7 of family found dead at their Ranchi home

Seven members of a family that was "under financial stress" were found dead in their rented house here today, police said.

The victims were a sexagenarian couple, their two sons, a daughter-in-law and two minor grandchildren.

A preliminary investigation hinted that the two brothers first killed the others, before hanging themselves, Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police A V Homkar said.

Six bodies were found in one room, while the seventh one in another, he added.

Five of the bodies were lying on a bed, while two were found hanging in the single-storey house at the Odaya locality under Kanke Police Station, Homkar said.

"Prima facie, this is a case of suicide. All the evidence have been collected," he told reporters.

Sachidanand Jha (65) was living in the house with his wife Gayatri Devi (60), sons Deepak (40) and Rupesh (30), daughter-in-law (Deepak's wife) Soni, granddaughter Drishti (6) and grandson Jungi (2).

Police said the incident came to light in the morning when Drishti's school bus came to pick her up but she was not at the designated spot. A neighbour, whose daughter also takes the same bus to school, went to the house to enquire and saw the bodies.

The landlord, who lives in another part of Ranchi, and the police were then informed.

Strangulation marks were found on the body of Sachidanand Jha and the two children, while a sharp weapon was possibly used to kill Gayatri Devi, the DIG said.

A preliminary investigation hinted that the two brothers first killed all the other family members and then hung themselves, he added.

The police found a 15-page suicide note on Deepak's body and a two-page document on Rupesh's body.

The documents said the family was under financial constraints and the school fees of Drishti and payment to the milkman, among others, were due.

Deepak worked as a store manager in a furniture company. In the suicide note, he wrote he was scared that his name could come up in a financial misappropriation case.

"The investigation is still not conclusive. All angles are being probed," the DIG said.